A marriage credit to cover the ceremony costs?

From sending announcements to the honeymoon to renting a room or the outfits of future spouses, a wedding generates many expenses, which is important to budget. To help finance the ceremony, marriage credit can be a practical solution. In the form of a personal loan, it allows brides and grooms to cope flexibly with expenses.

The figures of marriage in France

In 2016, the future spouses devoted an average of 8,821 euros to the organization of the ceremony, an increase of 538 euros compared to 2015 according to an Opinionway barometer. But among the 240,000 unions celebrated in France each year, the situations are extremely different:

– There are thus 4 647 euros of expenses for a “small” marriage of 50 guests;

– or a cost of 16,397 euros for 150 guests or more.

For couples, marriage is therefore a significant expense, for which a source of funding must be found. Of course, family and friends are often there to help the bride and groom (in 73% of cases). But for 85% of the unions, this is not enough to cover all the expenses of the ceremony. The marriage credit is then an interesting solution.

Wedding budget: the costs to take into account

To budget for a wedding, it is essential to consider all expenses before, during and after the ceremony:

if the administrative formalities are free, the establishment of a marriage contract with a notary costs about 500 €;

The purchase of the outfits of the bride and groom can come back to a few hundred euros or a few thousand … But if we add the alliances, the hairstyle and make-up on D-Day, a budget of 3 000 € is fast achieved;

the cost of making and sending announcements is also very variable, from € 1 for the simplest to € 5 for the most sophisticated. A unit cost to be multiplied by the number of guests (67 on average in 2016);

the number of guests also affects the budget to be provided for the wine of honor, the meal, the drinks, the desserts. A minimum of 50 € is to anticipate, but this post is rather 100 € for a high-end wedding;

the rental of the room, its decoration and the animation of the evening represent a large budget. From a minimum of around € 1,000, it is possible to reach summits for a party organized in a prestigious place.

To this budget established for the ceremony, it should also add the icing on the cake: the honeymoon, for which the newlyweds spend an average of about 900 €!

A tailor-made financing solution: the marriage loan

To help newlyweds to cope with all these expenses, financial institutions have developed specific offers related to the financing of this exceptional event. Called “wedding credit” (or “credit Pacs” in the context of a civil union), this loan can cover all or part of the budget of the ceremony. In the Consumer Code, these offers are classified in the category of personal loans. The bride and groom can freely use the amount borrowed. Since this is an unrestricted consumer credit, the borrower is generally not required to justify the expenses incurred. This simplicity and flexibility give more freedom to the bride and groom.

How to choose a wedding credit

As with all forms of personal loans, future spouses must first clearly define their financing needs and their repayment capacities. Depending on the wedding budget and the monthly payments they are able to repay, it is possible to calculate the optimal loan period.

Once the budget and loan duration are set, the couple can easily compare marriage credit offers between institutions, focusing on two criteria:

the total cost of credit over the life of the loan. Expressed in euros, it represents the difference between the total monthly payments repaid and the amount borrowed initially;

the annual percentage rate of charge (APR). This rate, expressed as an annual percentage, expresses the actual cost of the marriage credit when all the elements are taken into account (nominal rate, insurance, administration fees, etc.).

The rules of operation of marriage credit

For starters, putting together a marriage credit record is simple. It is sufficient to provide the usual supporting documents:

The marriage credit works according to the same rules as a personal loan. The future spouses benefit from the protection of the Consumer Code, in particular as regards the maximum amount borrowed (€ 75,000) and legal withdrawal periods, which are 14 days after receipt of the offer and again 14 days after the loan signature. So much time that the bride and groom must consider before being able to freely dispose of the funds of their marriage credit.